In the Limelight
by Vassili Zaitzev
Summary: As the First Race in the Eleventh East-West War begins, there is a change in fortune for one Seutochi player. This minor character will have to fill in a bigger role than she was intended for. Follow the match through the eyes of this character, a counter named Mari Murata. Edit: Now filled with drabbles that focus on our favorite pigtailed heroine.
1. A Ripple in the First Race?

"What an upset! Mio is the first loser!"

The words of the commentator seemed muted to one Mari Murata, eighth ranked student of Seutochi's elite class of Keijo players. Her eyes were still transfixed on the waves moving towards the stands as her comrade disappeared under the serene blue water. Just like that with little warning, Mio Kusakai was gone, eliminated. Only one word managed to wrestle itself free from Mari's tongue.

"How?!"

Her answer came in the form of a little giggling as a pair of legs touched down on the pole where Mio once stood. It was one of Suruga's players, the twin that Mari didn't remember if she was Akari or Kaho.

"I'm surprised she fell for that! Look like the Queen of Hip was dethroned!"

The twin's voice was one of a taunt, happy that she just knocked one of Seutochi's elite players out right off the bat.

"Primary target is down, moving to secondary."

A monotone voice appeared below the pole as the second twin swung on top behind her sister. The twin in front laughed as she stared at Mari. "After taking out Kusakai, she should be a piece of cake Kaho!"

Despite the situation, Mari felt her face heat up in anger.

 _They think I'm that weak?!_

She grit her teeth, determined not to let the twins gain any advantage, when a flicker of movement caught her attention. It was her teammates Kotone and Sayaka. They were both moving out of the way of the large Suruga player, Saki if she remembered right.

"God Hip Impact!"

Mari let out a soft curse as she jumped high in the air, just avoiding the shockwave that reverberated around the entire land. The twins did the same, pulling back and giving the redhead some distance.

 _Like a tank! There's no way we can force her off with just one!_

Kotone seemed to think similarly, for as she avoided the blow her eyes locked on Mari's and narrowed. The redhead nodded, she understood what her fellow player wanted.

 _Now how to get there?_

The pigtailed girl looked at the twins, who were now charging at her. The one in behind, Kaho, seemed to disappear under the pipe while her sister came right at her.

"You'll look good wet!" Akari taunted as she twisted her lower half to strike Mari with her butt.

 _Not this time!_

Mari tensed her body as she pulled all her strength into her legs. As Akari launched foward, Mari kicked herself up with her legs as she tucked her arms in a somersault.

"What?!"

Akari seemed surprised at the move, and as such sailed under the airborne Keijo player. Mari landed on her shoulder, almost falling off the pipe as her feet moved quickly to gain some traction.

Her legs wobbled a little as she moved, but she was able to gain some more distance from Akari, who had almost fallen off herself with all her energy wasted on nothing. Glancing back, she saw the second twin emerge from under the pipe were she had stood.

 _Damn! if I stopped to counter, I would have been caught!_

Gulping at her turn of fortune, Mari stepped lightly off the pipe while aiming to land behind Sayaka. The platinum haired out fighter smiled at the sight of her. "That was a good move."

Mari found herself blush at the comment; Sayaka was already going toe to toe with the better Suruga's and she was being complimented. Her face turned sad as she replied, "I'm sorry about Mio. I was careless and didn't back her up."

Sayaka seemed saddened, but gave a small smile even as she shook her head. "It's ok, we'll win for her!"

The words bolstered Mari's spirits, and she too smiled. _This is for Mio!_

Mari gripped her toes along the cold steel pipe as she ran forward with Sayaka. To her right, she saw Kotone follow on a parallel pipe. She saw the two veer off towards the last member of Suruga, Nanase. Mari made a move to follow, but saw Kotone's eyes flicker to the massive girl a few pipes length away.

 _I see!_

The pigtailed charged at Saki, the walking tank whose butt shook the entire land asunder. Her opponent smiled, readying herself as she shouted a warning to her comrade. Instead, the large girl looked on in shock as Kotone and Sayaka suddenly veered towards as Mari put all of her energy behind her move. Kotone moved first, thrusting her butt at Saki's chest while Sayaka followed suit. Mari twisted her body so her rear now faced Saki as all three girls launched forward.

"Seutochi Style Combination! Triple Assembled Attack!"

Even as she shouted, Mari wanted to cry out in pain. It felt like her ass was hitting a concrete wall! But she refused to give up; she was not the weak girl the twins thought her out to be! Her bum tightened as it pushed alongside her friends. Soon enough, she was rewarded as Saki cried out in anger as she was pushed off the pipe. The giant girl tumbled over on her journey to the water. Landing heavily on the pipe, Mari let her hands hold her bruised bottom as she greedily gulped in mouthfuls of air.

"That was tough."

The redhead wasn't afraid of admitting the difficulty to her teammates, who only smiled back and nodded in approval.

"And Saki is the first one out from Suruga! What amazing teamwork by Seutochi!"

Whatever else the announcer had to say was lost on the trio from Seutochi. A few pipes away, Nanase looked quite angry at her teammates loss.

"Murata."

Mari perked her head up to look at Kotone. The dark haired girl was switching her gaze between the remaining members of Suruga. "Go after the twins, we'll take care of her." She finished her sentence while staring back at Nanase.

For a moment, Mari wanted to object, but thought better of it.

 _If they both need to team up on her, she must be the strongest one._

She bit her lip, maybe focusing on the twins was the better idea. _Can I do it though?_

Sayaka seemed to read her mind, "You can take them, just be aware."

That seemed to shake the pigtailed girl out of her stupor. She nodded at her teammate before taking off towards the twins. It only took a few hops and crossing of pipes to find herself facing the pink haired duo. "Back for more? I guess you like getting dunked!"

Mari recognized Akari being the louder one, while Kaho simply stared back. Both twins seemed ready to take her out at first chance.

 _Have to be careful...if they lock me like Mio it's all over!_

She tensed her body, her eyes on the lookout for any sign of attack.

The sign came as the twins split off in different directions. Mari kicked herself back as Akari launched her butt forward at her. She barely dodged the red-bikini clad ass before her eyes caught Kaho moving behind her. She cursed as she realized the twins had caught her in a pincer before Kaho launched her attack. Mari jerked her body to the side as she felt her feet start to slip.

 _Not good-there!_

She launched herself towards a lower pipe, hoping to gain some distance from her aggressors. Akari laughed at the fleeing red head, "Is that your special, running away?"

Her temper up, Mari went to bite out a retort when the sound of splashing caught her attention. _Who was it!?_

Her heart sank as she noticed the bruised form of Kotone rising in the water. "No!"

"Looks like your friend couldn't handle Nami!" Akari taunted as she launched herself towards Mari. The redhead cursed, moving herself back before ducking as Kaho came after her as well.

 _If I go out, then it's just Sayaka! I can't let that happen!_

She grit her teeth, jumping back as her brain racked feverishly for a way out. Could she use her technique at this stage? So lost in her thoughts, that Mari didn't see the end of the pipe until she back up into the vertical column. "Crap!"

Akari laughed at the girls misfortune, it was time to get rid of her. The brash twin took off as her sister finished moving up behind her. "Sister wait!"

Mari didn't hear Kaho call out, all of her sense were focused on the incoming Akari. Her eyes narrowed as she tensed her body up. _Here's my chance!_

The twin kicked herself up in the air, twirling her body as she readied herself for the attack that Mari knew took out Mio. Both girls called out their attacks.

"Shooting Butt Star!"

"Mirror Butt!"

The latter call made Kaho look on in confusion, what was the Seutochi player doing? Mari paid the twin no heed as she launched herself up as well, mirroring Akari's movement to a T. Her body twisted around as she gathered the energy to attack. Her foot pressed against the vertical column as she propelled herself towards her higher target. Hurtling towards the climbing redhead, Akari looked on in shock.

"What the?!"

Seconds passed slowly as the two players closed the distance. Akari tensed her body, confident her technique could not be defeated by a pale copy. So her surprise was great when Mari flew just over her, missing by a few feet. Her confusion dissolved as she looked at the redhead's path.

"Sis!"

Kaho was standing stiffly on the pole, her eyes glazed over as she muttered, "Look at all the star butts."

The next instant was painful for Akari as she saw her sister get knocked off by her own technique. High above, Mari clenched her legs as she landed on the column and let out a deep breath, "It worked."

Looking down, she saw Akari's eyes widen as she crashed butt first into the column. She smirked; the twin had not expected the move and took the hit without a guard. The brash pinkette wobbled, her legs shaking like a leaf, before she tumbled off the pole and into the water below.

 _That was...not what I expected, but oh well._

The sound of cheering from the Seutochi side made Mari look around. The splash at the far end of the gym made her grin as her eyes confirmed the soaked form of Nami Nanase rising from the depths.

"The First Race is over! Miyaka and Murata take it for Seutochi!"

Mari's heart fluttered, did she really help win the match? It seemed surreal to her, but her face broke into a smile as she saw the tired but proud figure of Sayaka waving back at her. Her tired body wanted to rest, but the redhead forced herself to make her way down to her school's side of the arena. The large smile didn't leave her face as she touched down next to her platinum haired teammates. Already, her classmates were coming towards her. Mari finally allowed herself to plant her butt on the floor in exhaustion. One triumphant thought rang through her head.

 _I did it!_


	2. Mari makes a friend?

A warm feeling brewed in her stomach, making its way upward until it found refuge on her face as her cheeks flushed a deep red. If someone was holding a mirror to her, she would see her hair and face match in hues.

One of her hands made its way to her cheek to cup it as she struggled to process the words just spoken by the young man in front of her. A few of her fingers brushed against a braided pigtail as her lips moved in a rhythmic manner.

"O...out of all the players...you like me the most?"

Her eyes moved side to side, as if trying shake away the implication. Of all the girls that took part in the races, of all the fighters that put their butts literally on the line, he would pick her?

The man in front of her wallowed too, unsure if he made the right decision to say what was on his mind and heart. He tugged at his collar as an audible swallow echoed the halls of the locker room. "Yes...I do...Murata Mari."

He looked away for only a moment, afraid that if she met his eyes her heart would truly melt. "I...don't know why though...I lost."

He cleared his throat as he tried to put his thoughts into words. "Well...your still in the elite, and it doesn't matter to me that you lost."

Brown eyes snapped to the boy in astonishment. "R...really?"

"Yes!" He seemed more determined now that he found his stride. His green eyes locked on her gaze as he spoke with a higher calling. "You advanced so far in your first year! It doesn't matter to me that you lost because your still amazing!"

Now her face flushed a deeper red. "You think that highly of me?!"

The boy nodded, his face radiated confidence and cheer. "Yes I do! No one has given you much attention in the Keijo circuit, but your someone I'm inspired by. You're up there in the ranks even if the limelight isn't on you!"

The boy continued, "Everyone focuses on Nozomi or Miyata, but your still an elite!"

Mari felt her heart flutter; no one had ever said that to her. Her body felt warm all over as the young man finished his exclamation. "I want to be like you in my path! To do their best in the ranks even without the limelight!"

"I...had no idea...it makes sense now." Her mind raced to all the letters he had written to her when she was in the academy. All the encouragements at her practices before the Exam. He had always been there for her...and it never clicked for her.

"I"m sorry...I never realized and made the connections." She felt ashamed a little, to ignore a friend who had done his best to help her. He laughed nervously, "It's ok...I hope I didn't come off as a creep."

Now it was her turn to laugh as she felt all of her anxiety of losing the match disappear. "It's fine...your ok."

Both of them laughed as the tension cleared around them. "I need to watch the races with my classmates, but I want to sit in on your trial. Martial arts wasn't it Takao?" He nodded, "It doesn't draw as big a crowd as Keijo, but I would be honored to have you watch me!"

The lips on Mari's face curved into a smile. "I would like that, but I need to change first." Takao look confused, until his eyes traveled down to soak in the sight of Mari in her green striped bikini. Now it was his turn to go red in the face. "I'm sorry! I totally forgot!"

His nervous apology was met with a soft hug as Mari wrapped her arms around his neck. "Don't worry about it." The embrace lasted only a moment, but it felt longer for both of them. Finally, Mari broke it off as she moved to the lockers. "I need to go, but I'll see you later."

She gave him a warm smile and a friendly wave before disappearing into the locker room. All that was left in the hallway was Takao. He said nothing, he didn't need to. His face had broken into a huge smile as if a great weight was lifted off his shoulders and had reinvigorated him. As he moved towards the bleachers, his heart throbbed as he promised to give it his all when the time came for him to put his skills to the test.

"For me, and for Murata-Chan."


End file.
